British team horse Abbervail Dream dies aged 28
Showjumper Abbervail Dream, who won team bronze for Great Britain at the 1998 World Equestrian Games, has died aged 28.
The horse was ridden during his career by Di Lampard, who is now the performance manager of the British showjumping team.
Mac, as the popular showjumper was known, was voted horse of the year by H&H readers in 1999.
He died of old age last week.
By Chairlift and out of Killea Beauty, Mac had a long and successful career with British team rider Di.
Di told H&H: “Old age caught up with him. It was a tough decision, but he was going downhill so quickly. After a wonderful life and retirement, we lost a family member who had been with us at Spring Farm for 24 years.”
The liver chestnut was bought in 1990 in Ireland by Robert and Dina Verburgt as a three-year-old from Dr Noel Cawley.
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As a six-year-old the gelding qualified for three young horse finals at the 1993 Horse of the Year Show, but a collecting ring accident left Di with a broken leg and the pair were unable to compete.
He won the Queen Elizabeth Cup at Hickstead when he was seven before going on to compete in his first World Cup at Olympia in London that same year.
Di and Mac made their British team debut at the CSIO Rotterdam when he was eight. This was followed by more than 40 appearances representing Team GBR.
His last appearance in the ring was at CSIO St Gallen in 2003, signing off a Nations Cup career that spanned a decade.
In 2004, Mac was officially retired at Hickstead. He spent his retirement and Di Lampard and Dietmar Ackermann’s Spring Farm in Oakham, Leicestershire.
Di and Mac went to two FEI European Championships (Hickstead and Arnhem) and two FEI World Equestrian Games (Rome and Jerez).
“Mac was a tough, brave yet careful blood horse with unlimited scope — he was a fighter who excelled in representing Great Britain in Nations Cups around the world,” said owners Robert and Dina.
“All of us will treasure our memories of him forever.”
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A graduate of Exeter University, Amy joined our news team from Redpin Publishing in 2008 as news writer. She was promoted to deputy news editor in May 2013 and became news editor in April 2015. She left Horse & Hound in March 2016 to take up an editorial position in Dubai.